Yawning, Kara felt herself beginning to doze during Potions. With it being November, all of the teachers were too busy reviewing all of the stuff they had taught earlier in the year to realize that the students were counting down the days to vacation. Her eyes drifted towards her quill, which she had enchanted to write exactly what the professor was droning on about. She had spent the majority of her nights concerned that her father would appear out of nowhere and demand to be part of her life again.

Pushing the thought out of her mind, her eyes glanced to James. Their eyes met and he made a face before turning his attention to the parchment in front of him. He scribbled something on it before slipping it onto her desk.

Hagrid’s not the only giant around here, if you know what I mean.

Kara chuckled and glanced at him. He was smiling, looking straight at the board as though he wasn’t making inappropriate jokes.

Do you want to head to the Shrieking Shack? We could do some shrieking of our own. She responded, tossing the parchment back at him.

James grinned devilishly before scribbling something else in response.

Interested in making some magic? My wand’s at the ready!

Underneath, he scribbled something else.

Cheer up, buttercup. Twenty more days of classes and then you get to spend forever and a day with the rest of the Potter/Weasley clan. We don’t bite.

Kara sighed. He didn’t understand, just because he had the perfect family. His parents weren’t flighty and were mostly accepting of everything that he did. Her mother was almost never around, neither was her father, and she hated being home. That was the difference between the two.

It’ll be a blast if you keep your hands to yourself and don’t make innuendos.

James rolled his eyes at her response.

When I Whomp my Willow, I think of you.

Kara pretended to gag and scrunched up her nose at the thought. No, James whomping his willow wasn’t exactly mind thrilling to her.

Gross. Did not need that mental image, thank you very much.

James chuckled.

Better bring your broom when you come, though. We have an intense Quidditch match before New Years.

Anything else I should bring, dad?

Nothing that wouldn’t sound sexual (;

Kara felt her cheeks flush as she tucked the note into her bag. James stuck his tongue out at her, as though he was mad that she had taken the note away from him.

“Ms. Queen, Mr. Potter, am I missing something?” Professor Williams asked, and the two looked at him blankly.

“No professor,” the two said in union.

“Ten points from Gryffidor for ignoring the creation of the Mandrake Draught.”

The two grumbled in response before the class was dismissed. Once the two made their way into the corridor, they were bombarded with a redheaded furry.

“Mum says you’re staying with the Potter’s for the holiday! Is it true?” Rose grinned, and James sighed. He turned to Kara, who was staring amusingly at Rose.

“I asked mum, and she said it was fine. Obviously she can’t keep her trap shut long enough to make it a surprise.”

Kara was about to respond when Rose gasped. “So it’s true! Thank Merlin! I don’t think I could spend another moment with just the family. Seriously, the lot of them are so annoying and they look up to James so much that he thinks he’s the bloody queen of England! Teddy and Victorie walk around, pretending that they aren’t dating, when clearly they are. Roxanne and Lucy and all the little twerps make snowmen, myself and Lily decorate the house with Aunt Ginny and the boys,” at this point, she glared at James “Enchant snow balls to hit me in the back of the head every time I go outside. And a day or two after Christmas, we play Quidditch. It’s the only time we ever see Uncle Harry play, since he was one of the best seekers that Hogwarts has ever seen. Albus wants to be just like him and-“

James covered her mouth and shot Kara an annoyed look. She smiled and hugs Rose. “Don’t worry, I’ll get them right back.”

Rose grinned before scurrying off to whatever class she had next. James sighed. “We aren’t really that annoying. Usually we just joke around.”

“No, writing her a letter today after dinner. ‘spect she won’t be too happy to hear I’m spending it with the Potter’s, but I’ve never really cared what she thought.”

James wrapped his arm around her shoulder in a friendly manner. “I’ll make sure that I enchant snow balls to hit your arse whenever you got outside too.”

“And I’ll make sure to push the Christmas tree on your head so that you break your limbs and smell like tree for the rest of vacation.”

James shut his mouth rather quickly.

***

Dear Mum,

Not going to be able to spend Christmas with you. The Potters offered me a place since James and I have projects for school.

Lots of Love,

Kara

That was the letter. The brunette watched her owl disappear into the night, blending in with the dark sky and brilliant stars. She hadn’t meant for everything to fall apart, and she knew that whatever relationship she had with her mother would suffer because of her decision. She knew that Melissa had no idea what it was like to be her, especially because of the whole ‘you remind me of your father’ nonsense.

Kara didn’t want to be like her father. She wanted to be an individual, and the fact that her mother constantly told her lies bothered her. That was enough. Her father never came around and left at the nearest opportunity of commitment.

Turning, she made her way out of the dorm room, ignoring the sleeping figures. She and James were something, and she knew that he liked it this way. Kara honestly wanted people to know that she was his, that there was something there. Maybe she would finally talk to him about it once they were alone around Christmas.

She sat by the fire, watching the embers burn slowly. It was nice, just to relax. Her eyes drifted shut and she felt herself drift away when someone called her name. Blinking, her eyes focused on the fire before drifting towards the dorm entrance.

Fred grinned at her from his spot before making his way over to her and sliding onto the ground. “Couldn’t sleep either?”

She shook her head. A calming silence fell between the two before Fred uttered four words she never wanted to hear.

“I saw you two.”

Kara felt her face flush, but refused to do anything about it. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

A chuckle escaped his lips. “You and James. The two of you were going at it when you thought no one was around. Trust me, I saw. Obviously I left before things left the PG 13 time, but it was enough…” his voice trailed off.

“Don’t tell.”

Don’t tell Michelle. His parents. Their classmates. Professors. Friends. Him. Fred understood. For some odd reason, he understood that there was something going on and understood that no one was supposed to know.

“I won’t.”

A breath escaped her lips as she rested her head onto his shoulder. He sat stiffly for a minute before relaxing. “He loves you.”

“No he doesn’t.”

The words tasted dull on her tongue and she felt her eyes tear up. He didn’t. There was no way James would love someone that was damaged like she was…he was normal, with normal people, and she wasn’t.

But Fred knew. He knew things that people liked to overlook. There was love. A lot of it.

Reviews make my day (: what do you think is going to happen with James and Kara? Fred and Michelle? Is Fred going to tell? And, most importantly, what do you think a Potter Christmas is like?